I want to stand up here and personally thank all the children that bore their testimonies last week. My wife and kids didn’t attend with me and it was an amazing what you can get out of a testimony meeting when you are able to focus 100% on the spirit.
Here is a question for all of us adults… Do you remember what your thoughts were like back then? Imagine yourself as a kid up here on the stage. This pulpit is where I bore my 1st testimony many years ago. Think like a child for a second. It’s hard, it is HARD to do!
We have been challenged, by the Savior, to become as a child if we are to enter into the Kingdom of God. We all know that scripture!
So, how do we become as a child? I am going to make the argument today that it is all about controlling our thoughts. You see, our thoughts define us and shape the lives that we lead.
Most of us have heard a lot over the years about REAPING what you SOW. Samuel Smiles (great last name), states it well.
Pay close attention…Sow a thought, reap an action;
Sow an action, reap a habit;
Sow a habit; reap a character;
Sow a character; reap a destiny.
So, if we take all the words out of the middle of this. What do we get?
Sow a thought, reap a destiny.
Another way of saying this can be found in Proverbs 23:7. Here we see the Lord speaking of man. “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he."
So, hopefully I have been able to quickly demonstrate the connection between our thoughts and the person that we eventually become.
Listen to Elder J. Thomas Fyans as he spoke to the Young Women in Brazil a few years ago. He is going to compare our thoughts to the Greatest River in the world, the Amazon!
“Not only is this Amazon the greatest river in the world, but even many of its tributaries are great rivers.
“One interesting feature about these rivers is their different colors. The Madeira, for example, is called a white river because its waters carry fine clay particles along its course. The black color of the Rio Negro comes from decaying organic materials picked up in the forests through which it passes. Still other rivers flow over white sands and often appear emerald green or turquoise blue.
“Just as these rivers are colored by the substances picked up as they flow along, so the streams of our thoughts are colored by the material through which they are channeled.
“Some rivers are sluggish and meander through low places. Their waters are dirty and full of debris.
“Other rivers flow down from the high places. Their current is strong, and as a result, these furnish electricity for our needs, and great ships sail upon them”
How likely is it that one of these tributaries (or side-rivers) can change their color? I would argue that it is not likely to happen. But, God has endowed all of us with the spiritual strength to change the color of OUR water. The only way to do this is to control what thoughts we have lying along the banks of our mind, so that the waters that wash through all-day long only pick-up pure/clean thoughts.
The world is filled with Satan’s influence. We are exposed to suggestive material in plays, advertising, music, movies, magazines, and television. Crime, violence, perversion, profanity, pornography, and sensual music are portrayed as acceptable and even desirable. There is so much out there that can and will “dirty-up our water” and eventually change its color all-together. Unclean thoughts come more easily if our minds are not prepared to resist them.
Our entire nature must be changed if we are going to become as a child and keep our water clean.
I am lucky enough to have a job that I love. I studied human behavior at BYU and now my primary focus every day at my job is trying to help people and organizations change human behavior. And we are not just talking small changes, we are talking “Quantom Leap” type of changes. It is not easy, but if we have a theme, it goes a little something like this…
How many of you have heard of a Paradigm? A paradigm is the way we SEE, UNDERSTAND, and INTERPRET the world; it’s our mental map. We see what we are conditioned to see and we are conditioned by our upbringing, environment, and experiences. Therefore, no 2 people see the world, or even a specific situation in the exact same way. Not even your brother or sister! We all are looking at life through our own specific prescription glasses.
Who among us have struggled with weight loss? I am going to give you a tip today that will help you meet and exceed whatever weight-loss goal you make for yourself here in about 2 weeks for 2011. So, get YOUR PENS READY!!!
This is based on a model that we call, the SEE… DO… GET… model
The problem that most of us face when we are trying to get results in life to something that is important to us is that we work on what we DO instead of the way we SEE the problem.
Do any of you know someone that has had a heart attack and after surviving the heart attack they lose a lot of weight and become healthy? Why is that? It’s because that experience forced them to SEE the world and their situation differently. They experienced, what we call, a Paradigm shift. Or, as the scriptures say, they were “compelled to be humbled”.
So, the results we GET in life depend on what we DO. What we DO in life depends on how we SEE the world around us. So, if we ever want to experience “Quantom Leap” type of changes in our life, we have to change the way that we SEE the problem and then our actions, or what we DO, will follow and produce the results, or what we GET.
So, there are many degrees of Paradigms when it comes to health, but let’s simplify…
Ineffective Paradigm: I eat to please my palat. My food choices are based on “taste”. My body satisfies carnal desires.
Effective Paradigm: I eat to fuel my body. My food choices are based on “health”. My body is a temple and should be treated with respect and care.
I am actually going through this myself right now. I have always eaten to please my palat and so have the majority of my extended family. Because of this paradigm my family has experienced many tragedies from multiple heart attacks, cancers, and an overall decline in our quality of life. So, as I reflected on my life recently, I decided that it is important for me and my family that I stay healthy. I had a banana and “Go-Lean” cereal for breakfast and I am determined to view food as fuel and not a “palat pleaser”. I have also started waking up super early and running around the neighborhood with my friend.
You might be thinking that I have flown off-topic, but there is a reason that I just went through all of that…
How does this relate to our thoughts?
Well, follow me for a second and explore your mind. Just a few minutes ago I stated, that the world is filled with Satan’s influence. We are exposed to suggestive material in plays, advertising, music, movies, magazines, and television. Crime, violence, perversion, profanity, pornography, and sensual music are portrayed as acceptable and even desirable.
So, what is it that might muddy the waters that flow through your mind?
Let’s dissect just one of those. How about “pornography”?
Would you agree that pornographic thoughts and actions change the color of our water? Of course they do!
If we want to eliminate these thoughts and actions where do most of us try to make the change?
Most of us work on what we DO, or our actions. What do we do?
• We move the computer to a more visible space.
• We put locks on specific websites.
• We limit the time we spend watching tv or surfing the web.
There are lots of things that we can do to try to control ourselves. But, by only working on our actions, I would argue that we will only ever experience “small change”. We will still have pornographic thoughts, maybe flashbacks from pornography that we experienced years ago. If we ever want to experience a “Quantum Leap” type changes we have to work on how we SEE the situation. How we SEE the situation!
What would be more effective?
I challenge that it would be more effective to work side by side with our Lord and Savior to view women/men in a different light. Beg him to see ALL women in a different light, as daughters of God. We have to change the way that we SEE the problem of pornography. Only when we (with our Saviors help) are able to change the way we SEE will we get those “Quantom Leap” type of results that we are seeking.
Just like an idea creates a blueprint, and a blueprint proceeds the building of a building. Everything is 1st created spiritually before it’s created physically.
President David O. McKay related this experience:
“Many years ago a young man came to me while I was president of the European Mission and made a confession of a wrong and sinful act. He justified himself by saying that he happened to be in a bookstore at the closing hour, and when the door was locked he yielded to temptation. He rather blamed the circumstances for his fall.
“But I said, ‘It wasn’t the circumstances; it wasn’t the locked door, nor the enticement. You had thought of that before you went to that bookstore. If you had never thought of that act, there would have been no circumstance strong enough to entice or to tempt you, a missionary, to fall. The thought always precedes the act.’
“Clean thoughts, high ideals, thinking of love in the true sense, temperance, helpfulness, cheerfulness, all are principles that will contribute to development of character. Thinking of self, harboring ill will against a neighbor, thinking of some opportunity to gratify appetite by smoking or drinking, will lead the individual to commit those things”
President McKay also said: “‘Tell me what you think about when you do not have to think, and I will tell you what you are.’ Latter-day Saints have the responsibility of thinking pure thoughts, of cherishing high ideals. As long as they do, their actions will be in accordance with those ideals”
Another story if there is time:
The people of the Netherlands are known for their cleanliness. Many women polish the brass on the doors, scrub the entrance to their homes, and even scrub the path to the sidewalk. This custom is prompted by their belief that if you walk a clean street you will not carry dirt and impurities into the home. The same idea can be applied to the mind. Continuous scrubbing of our thoughts and cleansing of our minds can help keep our actions clean and pure.
“Thoughts are the tools with which we shape our character, just as truly as a great sculptor with chisel and mallet chips and chips on the rough marble until it’s shaped … into … a splendid and perfect work of art. Just so every thought is shaping our character and, consequently, shaping our destiny and our lives. Therefore the result is, in all our thoughts, the creation of a character” George Q. Morris
Conclusion: Our thoughts influence our actions. In our efforts to become more like our Father in Heaven, it is important that we keep our minds clean and pure. Even though evil influences are all around us, we can control our thoughts and direct them in the right way.
We must try to avoid things that encourage unclean thoughts. We need to choose wisely our friends, television and video programs, movies, books, and magazines. We must be sure to plan wholesome channels into which we can direct our thoughts. Thoughts are like water. They run continuously and, if not directed, will wander through paths of least resistance into low places. We must keep the commandments of God and seek the companionship of the Holy Ghost. We must pray often, asking our Heavenly Father to guide us as we work to control our thoughts and keep them clean.
Remember: Sow a thought, reap a destiny.
Make sure that the thought you Sew is a good one. In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
